If there was any thought of Leeds United’s players no longer playing for their manager, Saturday threw it right out of the window. The Leeds players threw the kitchen sink at Man City, yesterday.
Having gone into the break 2-0 down, Farke and Leeds knew they needed to do something differently. It was a poor first half, but one that many had expected, even if Phil Foden scored inside the first minute.
No one saw what would come next. Farke was proactive, making two subs and changing formation during the break. On came Dominic Calvert-Lewin, who proved to be a menace for Man City’s defence.
Who was your Leeds MOTM against Manchester City?
Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images
He scored four minutes after coming on, before winning a penalty under the challenge of City’s second goal scorer, Josko Gvardiol. City would go on to win with a late Foden winner, but Leeds deserve praise.
Graham Smyth said Farke was yet to lose the players after watching the 2-1 loss to Villa. Now, Nmecha’s praise of Farke post-match will prove to the 49ers that these players still believe in their German gaffer.
Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty ImagesLukas Nmecha in cheeky verdict of Erling Haaland’s display
Nmecha might have seen his penalty saved by Gianluigi Donnarumma, but he converted the rebound to score a third Premier League goal in three games and a fourth this season. He remains Leeds’ top scorer.
Down the other end, Erling Haaland hardly had a sniff. Leeds’ close watch of Haaland may have given Foden space, but Leeds did keep the striker quiet. Nmecha praised Farke’s change of formation on LUTV.
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He also took a dig at Leeds-born Haaland, who had an unusually quiet afternoon.: “We went with two up front, 5-3-2, it worked really well, out wide they had a lot of threat but doubling out there was very good.
“Centrally I thought the centre-backs did a really good job on the big man up front, we didn’t really see much of him. I thought we put in a really good shift,” Nmecha told Bryn Law and Tony Dorigo at full-time.
STAT – Erling Haaland only had one shot in today’s match. Across all competitions, this is his joint-fewest shots in a home match for Manchester City when playing the full game 👏🏻
Photo by Oli SCARFF / AFP via Getty Images Leeds and Daniel Farke must use Man City as a turning point
It absolutely has to be a turning point, for the sake of Farke. While it was a hugely encouraging display, it was still another defeat for Farke. A fourth loss in four, and a sixth Premier League defeat in seven games.
If Farke is going to survive, and Tim Sherwood doesn’t think that will be possible, he absolutely has to get a result against Chelsea at Elland Road on Wednesday night. If he does, City must be a turning point.
A sense of belief will come from the City game, some confidence and the chance to develop momentum. But not only that, the new formation will give Farke, the players and fans a new solution to believe in.
If Farke can go against the odds and avoid defeat against Chelsea on Wednesday night, it will keep him in a job until Liverpool at least. A win will see Elland Road erupt as one of the club’s rivals come to Yorkshire.
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